The big news is the latest Dept of Labor grants for innovative training is that materical created with the grants must be available under Creative Commons licensing! That's the first I've heard of a such a requirement, but it's a nice addition to a current education focus (including by Esri) on Open Education Resrouces (OER). Now onto the grants and how well GIS did:

[On Sept 19] Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis today announced $500 million in grants to community colleges and universities around the country for the development and expansion of innovative training programs. The grants are part of the Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training initiative, which promotes skills development and employment opportunities in fields such as advanced manufacturing, transportation and health care, as well as science, technology, engineering and math careers through partnerships between training providers and local employers. The U.S. Department of Labor is implementing and administering the program in coordination with the U.S. Department of Education.

The recipients using the money for geospatial programs include a GIS certificate in Hawaii:

HAWAII

University of HawaiiConsortium Leader
Total Consortium Award Amount: $12,665,892

Consortium members: Kauai Community College, Hawaii Community College

Courses developed for this proposal — in Business and Accounting, GIS, Food Innovation, Sustainability,
EV/PHEVAutomotive, Water/Wastewater — will be delivered in hybrid/online formats and include the use of innovative technologies for student assessment. These new courses will provide additional training in much needed subjects. The proposal also enhances student services, including adding staffing for prior learning assessment, career counseling, internships and placements, and builds capacity for tracking the impact on students for further education or employment.

Stark State College in Ohio recieved funds, too. While there is no metion of GIS in its proposal, the local paper cites a school news release suggesting GIS was to funded in part. Perhaps those funds are from the Timken Foundation?

According to a news release form Stark State, the $2.76 million from Department of Labor and $500,000 from the Timken Foundation will cover curriculum development for new associate degrees and certificates related to the emerging oil and gas industry, as well as costs associated with creating and supplying training labs for commercial driver’s license, computers, geographic information systems (GIS), geology, valves, and welding.

A summer article is republished by UNH news explaining how a new five course geospatial science certificate is now available at the school. Admission requires current matriculation at UNH or a bachelor's degree. The first course launched in August.

The Geospatial Science Graduate Certificate program requires students to take five classes in total: the new Elements of Geospatial Science class; one of four GIS classes offered on campus; one of six Spatial Analysis classes, and two program-approved electives.

The incoming enrollment at Sault College (Sualt Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada) is up 6% over the year before. GIS is among the popular courses of study and even is among the "wait listed" programs. It's not clear what that means, but there are 20 such programs at the school this year up from just 10 in 2010.